Syrian court sentences two to death over March 2025 coastal violence

On October 15, 2026, Aleppo's Military Criminal Court sentenced two men to death and jailed others over violent sectarian clashes in Syria's coastal region during March 2025. The trials target both pro-Assad insurgents accused of killing 238 military personnel and new government security forces, including 82nd Division member Mohammed Bakour, who received 20 years for killing Alawite civilians. Concurrently, security forces arrested militia leader Ali Kayali, key suspect in the 2013 Baniyas massacres and Reyhanli bombings.

Aleppo military court sentences on October 15

• ▪On October 15, 2026, the Military Criminal Court in Aleppo sentenced Ammar Abdul Aal to three years in prison for torture and acquitted defendants Abdul Raouf Bakrjan and Mohammed Zarzouri.
• ▪On October 15, 2026, Aleppo's Military Criminal Court sentenced Syrian Defence Ministry 82nd Division member Mohammed Bakour to 20 years in prison for intentional murder during March 2025 coastal violence.
• ▪On October 15, 2026, the Military Criminal Court in Aleppo sentenced Al-Waddah Ismail and Maher Ali to death for inciting civil war and leading armed groups against Syrian public forces.
• ▪On October 15, 2026, Syria's Military Criminal Court sentenced Maher Othman to 12 years in prison for complicity in inciting civil war and leading armed groups.

September 17 court rulings

• ▪Aleppo's Military Criminal Court acquitted a fourth defendant during its September 17, 2026 trial over the March 2025 coastal abuses.
• ▪On September 17, 2026, Aleppo's Military Criminal Court sentenced one defendant to death, one to life, and one to 20 years imprisonment over March 2025 coastal abuses.

Aleppo public trial proceedings

• ▪Public trials regarding the March 2025 coastal violence began at the Palace of Justice in Aleppo on November 18, 2025.
• ▪Subsequent court hearings in Aleppo focused on reviewing evidence and examining the legal arguments presented by the defendants.

Casualty reports from March 2025 coastal violence

• ▪A Syrian investigative committee reported that March 6, 2025 attacks by former regime remnants killed 238 military and security personnel in Tartous, Latakia, and Hama.
• ▪A Syrian national committee documented that at least 1,426 people, mostly Alawite civilians, were killed during several days of March 2025 coastal sectarian violence and retaliatory attacks.

Arrests of militia leader Ali Kayali and deputy

• ▪Syria's General Intelligence Service arrested militia commander Ali Kayali, also known as Mihrac Ural, as Kayali attempted to flee across the Syrian border.
• ▪On October 4, 2026, Syrian security forces arrested Jamal Tarabulsi, who served as deputy to militia leader Ali Kayali.

Suspects linked to 2013 Reyhanli bombings

• ▪Syrian militia leader Ali Kayali is named by Turkish authorities as the main suspect in the 2013 twin bombings in Reyhanli, Turkey.
• ▪Turkish intelligence arrested Omar Al Khatib in October 2026 for allegedly coordinating between attackers and Syrian intelligence during the 2013 Reyhanli bombings that killed 52 people.

Documented atrocities in 2013 Baniyas massacres

• ▪According to the Syrian Network for Human Rights, militia forces killed 264 civilians in Al Bayda and 195 civilians in Ras Al Nabaa during 2013 massacres in Baniyas.
• ▪Witness testimonies documented summary executions and the burning of homes and bodies committed during the 2013 Baniyas massacres in Syria.